


Oh, THAT one time in Malta

by Giulifruli



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: E' Nicolò con l'accento, Fluff, Italian, M/M, Romance, What happened in Malta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:47:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25222636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Giulifruli/pseuds/Giulifruli
Summary: What happened that one time in Malta, or how the Immortal Husbands got together
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Comments: 28
Kudos: 533





	Oh, THAT one time in Malta

"So let me get this straight." Nile is sitting at the kitchen table, watching Nicky with a puzzled expression that makes her face scrunch up. She takes a sip of her coffee (Espresso, Italian style, because according to Nicky "there is only one way to make coffee, and trust me, you Americans haven't got the hang of it") and waits for Nicky to turn his attention to her and away from the cooking show playing on the TV: "You and Joe have been together since the Crusades? Like... no breaks?"

Months ago, she wouldn't have dared to ask such a personal question, but over time (after the disastrous situation in London, casting Booker out, and dealing with Andy's newfound mortality while trying to bust a trafficking ring, which resulted in Nile dying and _coming back to life while cursing and spitting bullets_ all over the couch of Nicky and Joe's apartment in Barcelona ) their relationship has become friendly, or at least cordial. Nicky laughs softly over the rim of his own cup and then smirks: "You forget that we also killed each other about a hundred times, at first". Nile finds herself laughing softly at that, and spares a thought to consider how weird her life has gotten. "Yeah, well, I stabbed Andy multiple times within hours of meeting her, and she shot me. Killing each other could be considered a new form of greeting, at this point, I think. Plus, in your case, it _was_ the Crusades." Nicky sighs, his expression turning wistful. Nile suddenly regrets asking and starts to apologize, but Nicky stops her. "No, it's okay. I was just... remembering, I guess. No, there were never any "breaks", as you call them. And before we met, we dreamt of each other for a long time. Later, we would both dream of Andy and Quynh, obviously, but we first dreamt of each other. Do you know..." He trails off then, his blue eyes flashing, then the corner of his mouth turns up. "I got it wrong, at first. We both did". Nile scrunches up her forehead even more. "What do you mean?" Nicky snorts, now clearly amused "I mean, when you start dreaming of a man you've only seen on the other side of a Holy War, you don't usually think _there's the love of my immortal life_. If you're young, arrogant, and full of religious zeal like I was, then you think _there's the infedele I must kill, God is sending me a sign_. So I did. And he thought the same about me, so he did too. Only, it didn't last". He snorts again, shaking his head slightly. "It took... a week, I think? For us to stop trying to kill each other, I mean. We agreed to a truce, eventually, once we could figure out what the other was saying. Then it took..." He trails off again, and Nile is struck by how little time means to him, to all of them. She supposes it must be an inevitable side effect of immortality. Nicky is scratching the back of his head, his expression thoughtful, and Nile knows he'watching her without really seeing her. "God, it took almost a century." His voice is soft when he says that, and as he rubs his hands up and down his arms Nile knows he's thinking about Joe, who she's seen repeating that gesture hundreds of times over the last few months. He should be getting back now, having gone out to buy groceries, since they were running out.

At that moment, she hears the sound of a key turning inside a lock, and Joe strides into the apartment, watching them both with raised eyebrows as he catches the expression on Nicky's face. "Everything okay?" As he asks, he fits himself against Nicky, holding him from behind. Nile is about to speak, to say something like "I'm sorry but I think I sent your immortal husband into a life crisis and _I didn't mean it I'm sorry"_ , but again Nicky cuts her off. "We were just talking. About when we confessed to each other." Then he smiles, eyes shining, as he switches to Italian. " _Malta, ricordi?"_. Joe, to Nile's _immense_ relief, just laughs: "Nile, let me tell you something about the love of my life here: he hasn't always been _great_ at feelings" he goes to continue, but Nicky cuts him off, again in Italian (" _non è vero! Non è assolutamente vero! Se solo_ _ **qualcuno**_ _mi avesse fatto capire le sue intenzioni, magari...)_ and Nile gets the feeling this is an argument they've had _many_ times before. " _Amore, taci._ It's true, by the way." And this time it's Joe that turns wistful: "he thought I didn't love him." He says it with such an incredulous expression, as if the very _thought_ of not loving Nicolò is absurd. His voice is muffled by Nicky's neck as he continues. "Which is insane, by the way. As if I hadn't already been in love for fifty years, by then. Everyone knew. Quynh knew, _Andy_ knew. It took him bleeding out in my arms for _him_ to get it, though." Joe turns quiet then, and sighs, holding Nicky impossibly close. Nile gets the impression that their world has shrunk and encompasses only them. Nicky turns to her, though, with a small smile. "After that, there were no breaks". She smiles and excuses herself from the room, not wanting to intrude in a private moment. As she makes for her room, she catches snippets of conversation, in a language she doesn't understand:

- _Davvero non lo sapevi?_

_\- Sì. E poi..._

_-Poi?_

\- _Beh, ero terrorizzato. Di me, soprattutto, credo. Di quello che stavo provando._

_-Amore..._

_-No, sto bene. Siamo insieme adesso. Sto bene._

_\- Sì, siamo insieme._

_\- Sai, sto pensando sempre di più a Malta. Dovremmo davvero tornarci._

_-Sarebbe bello._

  
  


  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Malta, ricordi?: Malta, remember?  
> non è vero! Non è assolutamente vero! Se solo qualcuno mi avesse fatto capire le sue intenzioni, magari: untrue! Absolutely untrue! Maybe if SOMEONE had made their intentions clear...  
> Amore, taci: Love, shut up  
> THE EXCHANGE AT THE END READS:  
> -You really didn't know  
> -I didn't. Also...  
> -What?  
> -I was terrified. Of me, most of all. Of what i was feeling  
> -Love...  
> _No, I'm alright. We're together now. I'm alright  
> -Yes, we're together  
> -You know, I've been thinking more and more about Malta. We should really go back  
> -It would be nice


End file.
